How Should Drug and Natural Health Product Companies Report Safety Information?

Official title: Consultation: Draft guidance on preparing and submitting summary reports for marketed drugs and natural health products

Open Regulations & Permits Health & Safety
Health Canada is updating the rules for how pharmaceutical and natural health product companies must report safety information about their products. The new guidance aims to simplify and clarify reporting requirements, making it easier for companies to comply while ensuring Health Canada gets the information it needs to protect Canadians.

Why This Matters

Take vitamins, supplements, or prescription medications? This consultation shapes how companies must report safety concerns to Health Canada. Better reporting means potential problems with drugs or natural health products get flagged faster. While this is mainly an industry consultation, the outcome affects how quickly safety issues reach regulators.

What Could Change

Drug and natural health product companies would face updated reporting requirements. The guidance consolidates existing rules into clearer, plain-language documents. Companies would also use a new form to notify Health Canada when significant new information emerges about a product's risks or benefits.

Key Issues

  • Are the revised guidance documents clear and easy to follow?
  • Does the new notification form capture the right information about product risks and benefits?
  • How well do the updated submission processes work for industry?

How to Participate

  1. Review the draft guidance on preparing and submitting summary reports and the draft notification form.
  2. Send your comments by email to mhpdpolicy-politiquesdpsc@hc-sc.gc.ca with the subject line "Summary Reporting Guidance – Consultation Comments".

Submit Your Input

Questions Being Asked (2)
  1. What are your comments on the draft guidance document?
  2. What are your comments on the draft notification form for significant changes in product risks and benefits?